Session 3. Backlash of Historical Denialism
Analysis of Difficulties in Statue of Peace Establishment in Germany and Proposal for Future Japanese Military ‘Comfort Women’ Movement RA Yu-shin I Lecturer, GPB College & Member, the Korea Verband, Germany
Introduction After Kim Hak-soon’s testimony on August 14 1991, the Japanese military “comfort women” movement gains a huge momentum. The subsequent testimonies by the victims revealed the truth that could not be resolved by legal regulations, political relations, and academic theories, and gained public sympathy. The victims’ accusations eventually led to the adoption of the Coomaraswamy report by the United Nations Human Rights Commission in 1996 and the McDougall report by the UN Human Rights Subcommittee in 1998. As observed from such cases, the international community shared a common viewpoint on the human rights violation and sexual violence in armed conflict against women that the “comfort women” case revealed, and in 2018, the UN Committee on Elimination of Racial Discrimination recommended Japan to take a victim-centered approach, taking steps in line with the victim’s perception. However, on the other hand, there exists a very different reality in the international community. A representative example of this is the conflict over the establishment of the Statue of Peace abroad. In many cities in the United States, including Washington, and in Germany, such as Berlin, there had to be a long tug-of-war with the relevant authorities until the statue was established. In not a few cases, the authorities did not approve the establishment itself or it was finally rejected in public places. Why is the establishment of the statue not welcomed even though it is a symbol of the universal values of fighting against sexual violence against women that the international community all sympathizes with? In such reality, what strategies should the “comfort women” movement take? This paper aims to answer such question. 349
